Lee Kun-hee's Art Collection Will Be Displayed in the Busan Museum of Art
Lee Kun-hee's special collection exhibition: Eternal legacy
Art has been loved by many great individuals from the past. Collecting precious and valuable masterpieces has been a famous hobby of rich people in high society. Among them, Lee Kun-hee, the second head of Samsung, was well known for his interest in arts. He collected lots of masterpieces during his lifetime. Lee Kun-hee's collection was not his own private collection, but also belonged to two other people, Lee Byung-chul and Hong Ra-hee. However, after he passed away, his family donated 1,488 pieces of his collection to the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea.
Among 1,488 pieces of his collection, about 90 pieces by Lee Jung-seob were put on special display for about a year in the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, which is located in Seoul. Since the museum is in Seoul, people from other regions could not enjoy the exhibition for a long time which caused lots of controversy. The museum was criticized for discriminating against different regions. However, the museum decided to have a regional tour so that more people could see the works of arts. The regional tour will be held at Gwangju National Museum, Gyeongnam Art Museum and Busan Museum of Art. From 11 November to 29 January, Lee Kun-hee's collection, including works of Park Su-guen, Yu Yeong-guk, and 62 other artists will be displayed in the Busan Museum of Art. Next year, seven other regions, including Daegu, Daejeon, and Chungju will also hold exhibitions.
The theme of the special exhibition is Korean traditional art. However, Gwangju National Museum, Gyeongnam Art Museum and Busan Museum of Art will display different art pieces depending on their chosen themes. The special exhibition will display about 120 works of art. The exhibition is free for all people. It must not have been an easy decision to donate the pieces of art. However, thanks to Lee Kun-hee and his family, more people will be able to enjoy the valuable masterpieces.